Understanding Handplanes
Deneb Puchalski shows us the parts of a hand plane as well as the differences between the sizes and families of tools. He also shows how you can change angles on the planes to have them work in various types of wood.
Deneb Puchalski shows us the parts of a hand plane as well as the differences between the sizes and families of tools. He also shows how you can change angles on the planes to have them work in various types of wood.
Thank you very much for this video! Straight to the point, clear explanations and better than many other classes I’ve had on woodworking tools. Great job!
@Bluzmann
Thanks for your question. The low angle tools are extremely versatile. Because they present their blade at a low angle of approach, they work great for end grain and softer straight grain woods. However, since they hold their bevel up. You can very easily change the angle of the bevel. This allows it to perform wonderfully in harder woods such as curly maple. We also sell toothed blades for most of the bevel up tools, which is great for thicknessing stock.
I hate to do this.. but not even 3 minutes in and he’s giving out incorrect info. I’m by no means a professional, but my no. 4 Stanley has a “set screw” in the back of the frog to adjust the mouth, even though the frog is screwed down to the bed of the plane from the top, where his “pins” are located.. it’s very easily adjusted too.. and I don’t have to remove the blade to make that adjustment.
Excellent instruction. Thank you.
Hi! Aside from sharpening the iron, would I still need to flatten the soles and the frogs before use? Tnx
I have been trying to learn how to use different lengths of planes by purchasing videos and this twenty minute video has been more enlightening then anything I have purchased so far. This video is very informative and has helped me to understand the difference between bevel up and bevel down planes and the difference in the frog angles and what they are used for. I also learned that different lengths of the planes are meant to take different thicknesses of shavings. Thank you for this great video Lie Nielsen Toolworks.
Those pins that hold the frog. They should have a non-circular profile so they face the right way without the user having to align them. They should also have a detent so they won’t fall out if you remove the whole frog and blade assembly.
And half a turn of backlash? Still not exactly in the area of high precision, are we? Under 1mm at the wheel periphery would be an acceptable figure.
The best way that I’ve found in 40 years of using hand planes to set the depth of the Iron is to run your finger over the sole and mouth till you just can barely fell the iron. The same is true for lateral depth adjustment. I’ve never cut my finger doing this.
I have an old Stanley No. 4 SB. It has two thumb screws and raise and lower the blade, but it does not seem to have a chip breaker. Am I missing a part? The chatter is unbearable and unless the blade is almost fully retracted I can’t get it to shave off a nice slide. Am I doing something wrong? Please advise. Thanks.
Why does a hand plane need to be sharpened before it’s ever been used?
Sad that I’ve learned more from Deneb then i have from my wood-tech teacher who is missing a finger because he was drinking and put his hand into a table saw… THE MORE YOU KNOW! lol
Many thanks for this video. It seemed to me that everybody else kept this info as top secret!
Hi, what kind of scoth brite do you uses?
Great information. Thanks for posting. I’m trying to follow in my grandfather’s footsteps……. I never knew the man but now I know his tools a lot better.
A video titled "Understanding Handplanes" starts off by telling you that block planes are "self explanatory". Real instructional value there…..
Where do get that sand paper
Maybe I missed a trick here, but what was the stated advantage of the low angle/bevel up tools? Less farting around to get the tool set up?
I really prefer low angle planes. Cheaper and they get the job done. The day you buy a plane should be the day you understand how to sharpen a plane blade. Same goes with chisels. Sharpening is pretty easy. Use a jig. Lie Nielsen makes a fine plane. I own their low angle smoother. You have to camber the blade. Buy a camber jig. Way better job than sanding.
Excellent presentation.
so let me get this straight, you go to the lumeryard, the 1×6 for instance isnt flat so you plane it flat / thats the purpose of a plane?
how do you get even sized boards if youre always planing it away?
Would like to see a video on the no 1 plane, since it is slightly different in adjusting, do you lift the brass lever cap, and then advance or retract the blade, then close the lever cap ?
Thanks for a very clear breakdown on the bench planes. I’ve been making a slow transition from caveman carpenter to Cajun craftsman for 20 years, and I’m just learning the importance and understanding the need for more than just one, general purpose plane in my shop. My love of all the hand planes is growing leaps and bounds as I learn more.
I’m confused. In this video, and in other videos I’ve seen, they’ll say that to make the bevel down plane more comparable to a low angle plane, you can use a 50 or 55 degree frog in your bevel down plane ….. huh? Wouldn’t that take you further away from a low angle? Wouldn’t you have to go to a 37 degree frog?
Hmmmm, before purchasing any sort of "plans", check out Woody’s site. Hyezmar’s finally published his rather dated but solid plans. Cheers!
Cemetery in the background? Never noticed in any other vids till now. Pretty neat.
I keep expecting him to break in to " Bueller, Bueller"
@Bluzmann
PART 2 of response. We also sell a 90 deg blade that makes some of the low angle tools work as a scraper. So, price, versatility and ease of use really make the low angle tools desirable. Hope this helps.
Very thorough and informative. Thank you.
You only need 2 bench planes, a jointer and a jack. The jack is for hogging off thick shavings to get boards close to the thickness or width you need. It’ll take off lots of wood because you grind the blade to an arc from side to side. The jointer will flatten, and smooth with its straight blade. The nice thing about a smooth plane is that it’s a lot easier to use than the jointer because the jointer is a heavy beast.
Perhaps the best explanation of hand planes I could see for beginning wood workers.
Thanks so much for posting.!!!
I can tell from listening to this guy for a few minutes that he is an expert. Rare and deep knowledge from someone totally engaged with his craft.
i have bought a couple of planes at garage sales. they are old band rusty but with a little elbow grease they work finne. my question is how do you tell what type of plane and what number they are. for example, a jack or a joiner. and the difference in the numbers? i have and old craftsman, and an old stanley i think. ? hope yall can help out with this so i dont end up buy a bunch of the same on only from different makers. thanks semper fi!
Thanks Deneb, that was an excellent overview for a person just beginning to use hand planes.
ok so we know what stand lee nielsen has with the plane down/on it’s side controversy
I’m really really frustrated when commentator is talking about a detail and we don’t get to see that detail up close. Example: in beginning he says the iron is bevel down. I think we should see a close up of what he’s saying. I may sound anal, but i(like most people) learn visually